GOLD COAST, Australia, August 21. Katie Ledecky continued to demonstrate why she’s the reigning Swimming World World Swimmer of the Year, while Michael Phelps earned his first international gold medal since returning from retirement as the Pan Pacific Championships had a strong night of swimming on night two.

Scheduled Events

Women’s 100 breast

Men’s 100 breast

Women’s 100 free

Men’s 100 free

Women’s 400 IM

Men’s 400 IM

Women’s 800 free relay

Men’s 800 free relay

Quick note: B finals of the 400 IMs are swum to start the evening to fill the void between the 7 p.m. session start time and the 7:30 p.m. local television live broadcast.

Women’s 100 breast

Photo Courtesy: Griffin Scott

In an incredibly exciting finale, USA’s Jessica Hardy simply had too much in the tank to hold off a hard-charging Kanako Watanabe of Japan for gold, 1:06.74 to 1:06.78. Hardy went out fast as she usually does with a 30.96, then withstood Watanabe’s 35.01 coming home. Both swimmers have been faster this year with Hardy actually securing a bit of an upset. Watanabe is ranked second in the world with a 1:05.88 from the Japan Open, while Hardy posted a 1:06.51 at U.S. Nationals.

That’s Team USA’s fourth win in a row in the event, with the fourth different winner as Amanda Beard (2002), Tara Kirk (2006) and Rebecca Soni (2010) are the previous U.S. winners dating back to Pennie Heyns’ 1999 win for South Africa.

USA’s Breeja Larson gave the U.S. a 1-3 in the event with a third-place 1:06.99, just off her 1:06.73 from U.S. Nationals.

It wasn’t the same type of speed she used to get here at U.S. Nationals with a sixth-ranked 1:06.51, but USA’s Micah Lawrence had plenty enough to torch the rest of the B final with a 1:07.16. Japan’s Rie Kaneto (1:08.03) and Australia’s Sally Hunter (1:08.52) placed well behind the American in the consolation heat.

Men’s 100 breast

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

Japan’s Yasuhiro Koseki clipped Brazil’s Felipe da Silva, 59.62 to 59.82, for gold in the finale. That’s a season best for both men as Koseki moved up to seventh in the world from a 59.91, while da Silva improved upon his own 59.91.

The win kept the title in Japanese hands after breaststroke legend Kosuke Kitajima won the title back in 2010.

You do not, however, want to be Kevin Cordes of the U.S. right now. In yet another high profile meet, he has drawn a breaststroke disqualification. A year after being part of a relay transition disqualification with Matt Grevers in the 400 medley relay at the 2013 World Championships, Cordes was disqualified tonight in the 100.

Cordes is now on the outside looking in for the 2015 Worlds roster spot after that disqualification.

Cordes’ cap slipped off at the start, and his goggles filled up with water. He wound up trying to take them off during the turn as his international meet bad luck continued.

USA’s Cody Miller could not replicate his sub-1:00 swim from Nationals, where he posted a 59.91, but he still managed to take the B final win with a 1:00.76 in his first major international night swim. Brazil’s Joao Gomes took second in 1:00.99 with Japan’s Hiromasa Sakimoto finishing third in 1:01.54.

Women’s 100 free

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

The Campbell sisters dominated the finale as Cate (52.72) and Bronte (53.45) went 1-2 in the 100-meter free tonight. Cate was unable to match her Australian All-Comers and Pan Pacs Championship mark of 52.62 from prelims, but had more than enough to chart a title-winning effort this evening.

That’s the first time since 1989 that an American has not won the title. In fact, 1989 is the only time someone from America has not won the 100 with Zhuang of China taking that title in 55.68. This is the first time an Australian has won the event in the history of Pan Pacs.

Meanwhile, USA’s Simone Manuel edged teammate Missy Franklin at the wall for third, 53.71 to 53.87. Both have been faster this year with Manuel (53.60) and Franklin (53.43) both turning in better times at Nationals.

Australia’s Melanie Schlanger ran away with the B final win in 53.65, moving to eighth in the world rankings in the process. USA’s Abbey Weitzeil, the American high school sprint queen with national high school records in both the 50 and 100-yard events, stepped up in competition in a big way with a second-place 54.78.

Men’s 100 free

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

In a bit of a stunner, Australia’s Cameron McEvoy crushed the field in the men’s 100-meter free for the win in 47.82. That performance lowered Nathan Adrian’s Pan Pacific Championship record of 48.05 from prelims, and delivered the sprint title back to Australia for the first time since Michael Klim (1997, 1999) and Ian Thorpe (2002) won the award three straight years for the Aussies.

McEvoy was unable to duplicate his second-ranked season best of 47.65 from Australian Nationals, but he had more than enough to win tonight as USA’s Nathan Adrian was unable to put together a successful title defense as he wound up with silver in 48.30.

James Magnussen of Australia, who leads the world this year with a 47.59 from the Australian Aquatic Super Series, finished third in 48.36, while USA’s Michael Phelps just missed the podium in his first chance since returning from his 18-month retirement. Phelps wound up posting a fourth-place 48.51.

Women’s 400 IM

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

USA’s Elizabeth Beisel became the first person to defend the women’s 400-meter IM Pan Pacs title since Janet Evans won in 1987 and 1989 as Beisel popped a sterling 4:31.99 tonight for the win. The 2010 winner improved her winning time then by three seconds to move to fourth in the world this year. Only Ye Shiwen (4:30.84), Katinka Hosszu (4:31.03) and Hannah Miley (4:31.76) have been faster this year.

Beisel was swimming against the clock as teammate Maya DiRado took a distant second in 4:35.37. That performance still ranks the American seventh in the world, but demonstrates just how much of a gap there is to the upper echelon of the elite. Australia’s Keryn McMaster claimed the other medal on offer with a bronze-winning 4:38.84.

USA’s Caitlin Leverenz kicked off the night with a 4:38.31 to win the B final of the event. That performance moved her up to 19th in the world rankings. Meanwhile, USA’s Becca Mann took second in the consolation heat with a 4:39.93, while Americans also picked up third and fourth in the heat with Cammile Adams (4:40.41) and Melanie Margalis (4:40.94) leading the U.S. dominance in the B final.

Men’s 400 IM

Photo Courtesy: Joao Marc Bosch

Kosuke Hagino scored a huge victory for Japanese individual medley as he won in a time of 4:08.31 in the 400-meter IM at the Pan Pacific Championships. That’s the first time Japan has ever won the intercontinental title, much less even take second in the event. Takahiro Mori was the lone medalist for Japan in the event with a bronze in 2002.

Hagino’s time came up a bit short of his own world-leading 4:07.88 from Japanese Nationals.

The U.S. demonstrated its depth in the event with Tyler Clary (4:09.03) and Chase Kalisz (4:09.62) taking silver and bronze. Clary cleared his second-ranked season best of 4:09.51 from U.S. Nationals, while Kalisz became just the third swimmer under 4:10 this year.

Japan’s Takeharu Fujimori topped the B final with a time of 4:14.12, just off his 10th-ranked 4:13.80 from Japanese Nationals. USA’s Michael Weiss finished second in 4:14.85 to tie Josh Prenot for 17th in the world.

Women’s 800 free relay

Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr

The early MVP of the meet thus far is easily USA’s Katie Ledecky. After a pair of powerful performances last night to win the 200 and 800-meter freestyle golds, including a near world record in the 800, Ledecky overcame a full second deficit to deliver Team USA the women’s 800-meter freestyle relay gold as the vaunted anchor leg.

Entering the water behind Australia, 5:50.84 to 5:52.04, Ledecky blitzed the water with a 1:54.36. It might not be the top 200 free split of the year with Sarah Sjostrom uncorking a 1:53 for Sweden over in Europe, but it was more than enough for a USA victory from the team of Shannon Vreeland, Missy Franklin, Leah Smith and Ledecky as the foursome clocked a 7:46.40.

That effort smashed the previous Pan Pacs record of 7:51.21 set by the Americans in 2010. It also serves as the Australian All-Comers record, beating a U.S. mark of 7:50.09 from the 2007 World Championships.

Men’s 800 free relay

Photo Courtesy: Griffin Scott

For the second straight relay tonight, it took a special effort by an American anchor to deliver Team USA the gold. After Katie Ledecky made up more than a second to win the 800 free relay, Matt McLean gave training partner Michael Phelps his first international gold since returning from his 18-month retirement.

Entering the water at the same time as Takeshi Matsuda of Japan, McLean held off Matsuda down the stretch with a 1:46.44 anchor against Matsuda’s 1:46.58 as the U.S. won in 7:05.17. The U.S. foursome was made up of 3/4 North Baltimore Aquatic Club swimmers with Conor Dwyer, Phelps, Ryan Lochte and McLean taking the title for the Red, White and Blue.

Japan, meanwhile, took second in 7:05.30 with the team of Kosuke Hagino, Reo Sakata, Yuki Kobori and Matsuda. Australia’s David McKeon, Cameron McEvoy, Mack Horton and Thomas Fraser-Holmes finished third in 7:08.55. New Zealand (7:13.83) and Hong Kong (7:41.74) also competed.

Author: Jason Marsteller

Jason Marsteller is the general manager of digital properties at Swimming World. He joined Swimming World in June 2006 as the managing editor after previous stints as a media relations professional at Indiana University, the University of Tennessee, Southern Utah University and the Utah Summer Games.